Passionate Realism
Wednesday, January 29, 2003
So every day (except Tuesdays) I make time to watch Passions. And every day while watching Passions I see advertisements for the next episode of The Other Half, the male-hosted version of The View that follows Passions in the lazy afternoon lineup. And I'm slowly becoming aware that it is the most insane show on television. Not only is it hosted by a cast of dubious male celebrities including Mario Lopez, Danny Bonaduce and regular guest Dick Clark, but the show honestly caters toward awkward females who think those three men are edgy hunks. I'm serious about the edgy bit. The men are determined to establish their watered-down Maxim masculinity since their draw is showing women a PG-13 version of what they want to think guys think. Usually they just make jokes about their love of football and miniskirts, but this tightrope policy occasionally leads to hilariously awkward, overstepping moments. Today, for example, one of the guys from Kangaroo Jack said he married his wife cause they screwed on the first date. The men cheered. The soccer moms tried to force a smile. Amazing stuff. A usual episode has no set format. Today started off with a roundtable of kissing stories, moved on to a pseudo-debate on putting parents in jail if kids don't do their homework before segueing through fashion at the Golden Globes on it's way to plug both Kangaroo Jack and Pizza Hut's new golden pizza crust. The high point was an interview with Tammy Faye Baker with a video clip in which she recites one of her poems ("I am trapped in loneliness like a second skin, suffocating me from the inside...") over a montage of walking around her farmhouse looking glum. The show wrapped up with a piece on combating dry skin. In the ominous overdub on the problem, Mario mispronounced "scaly" and the crowd went wild. So the question is, "Is The Other Half Passionately Realist?" I'm not sure yet. I'll get back to you.
Tuesday, January 28, 2003
I understand the purpose and the problem of the stereotype, but what I am against is the idea that use of stereotypes in artistic endeavors is a cop-out, unfair, or undesirable. Sometimes, maybe even often, it is all of those things, but I think that a character can conform to the basic traits of a stereotype and still be useful and still be more than a stock, utility character. By improving the art from which those characters will be born, you positively alter thair overall usefullness. It takes a good artist to overcome the limitations of the stereotype and make it useful rather than redundant. I do understand that perpetuating stereotypes can be damaging, but I think that it is up to the artist to create a world wherein stereotyped characters can coexist with nonstereotyped characters. Again, see Bring It On. Kirsten Dunst's foes on the cheerleading squad are cruel, pretty, popular girls: the dominant cheerleader stereotype. They are believable as more than stereotypes because of the proliferation of non-traditional cheerleader "types," and though they don't recieve much character development, you understand that their personalities are accurate- but that there may be more to them than just the personalities .
Another movie featuring useful stereotypes is Finding Forrester, and one which employs steretypes only to defuse them is Yellow, we're presented with stereotypes but are also shown the motivation behind the stereotype thus giving it gravity and dimension. Consider the domineering Asian father. Though he is mean and officious throughout the movie, we eventually see that it's not just that he wants his son to succeed in America; he also understands how quickly things can disappear and is more worried about losing than winning. That may not sound like much of a distinction, but it's enough of a nuance to justify the stereotype while making it useful, especially given the backdrop of other Asian characters against which his character works.
The Passionate Realist world is one bound by natural laws and order. This is a world of cause and effect, and the stereotype fully fits into it. It exists because the real-life equivalent exists, it is problematic because it is overused and underutilized, and it can be a useful tool in good art.
Monday, January 27, 2003
bring it on? not afraid to be what it is...a cheerleading movie....sure not the best in the world......but it does herkies in the face of snobby film people and says "oh, i'll bring it" kindergrarden cop?!?! arnold not afraid to bust his stereotype....one that he created and that he embodies......almost making fun of himself in spots...and cause as a passionate realist, i like the damn thing and i don't give a crap if it's cheezy or bad of whatever.....he has a ferret for christs' sake! what about orson wells? i just watched citizen kane...i hadn't seen it in years. he sat up and said holy crap....i can DO something with this "film" stuff! besides, i've never heard of The Bird People in China, or seen all of underground...............so i wanted to name something i was familiar with and those came to mind. could someone loving a movie make it pr....??? in a sense? i don't know.
I have only a few small issues with Bring It On (especially the diction), but I think it's a Passionate Realist exercise, especially when you listen to the director's commentary. First, the subject matter alone, tackled without cynicism, makes the movie Passionately Realistic. Even the opening sequence, which is sardonic and plays on the popular stereotype of the cheerleader, is used to embrace and marginalize the stereotype so that you can appreciate the characters more and accept the fact that you are rooting for cheerleaders, mocked perhaps even more than nerds in film and television. One of the tenets of Passionate Realism is the acknowledgement that stereotypes exist because the types exist. The problem with the stereotype isn't the stereotype but the steretype's existence at the cost of all other types. A motivated, smart Asian as a type is drawn from reality, but from that same reality, many other popular types can be drawn. With Bring It On, we get the stereotype and we get the other types.
And I saw a matinee of this play today in Venice and it's one of the most beautiful things I've seen all year. Anyone with a soft spot for plays, beautiful things, or Aeschylus should take a look at it---at the very least glancing at the introduction of Bella. Imagine it on a white marble stage. Just breath-taking.
Kudos to the Los Angeles branch of the Passionate Realists! If artistic movements threw fondue parties, they would all be like last night. On a similar note, a motion has been made to make Tuesday nights the official Passionate Realist Film Night of the Los Angeles family. Each Tuesday, a different Passionate Realist will host the Passionately Realist movie of their choice at their pad. This week, Styles is having people over to watch Takashi Miike's The Bird People in China. Any Passionate Realists who would love to get in on some hot film action should email the first official email address of the greatest movement ever: passionaterealism@hotmail.com. PR Film lovers are already jockeying to claim titles, and guaranteed movies of the future include Emir Kusturica's Underground, Velvet Goldmine, House Party, and of course, Pennies From Heaven.
Sunday, January 26, 2003
yes yes, santa barbara! i remember when it first started airing, it came on right befor the young and the restless, so i didn't like it because it was the one thing that stood between me and victor newman! just like i didn't like rugrats which stood between me and ren & stimpy...little pre-school bastards! i think soaps are very PR. why do people refer to them as "my stories"? because that's what they are fantasy. and oh what fantasy they are :) we can escape to cousins dating brothers, and aliens exorsizing terrorists...watching the horro the characters are feeling while knowing we are safe. entertainment at all costs. while we;re talking about PR characters and shows....i'd like to throw in Frank Drebin......from the naked gun. just as you said below amy "wise-cracking wooden dummy was played earnest and straight." now frank drebin doesn't make many jokes....he doesn't have to he IS the joke. he's one of my favorite characters of all time......all time....... "no matter how silly the idea of having a queen might sound to us, we'll do our best to protect her"
Saturday, January 25, 2003
And E---are you trying to pick a fight with this "Punch Drunk Love" business? Don't think you can just slide it in as Passionately Realist without a fierce battle. En Guarde!
Hey Ross baby! Welcome to the PR blog! I like your soap additions to the soap opera debate. My grandma was a huge fan of Santa Barbara. My grandpa preferred Dallas. But we've opened up a melodramatic can of worms here. Can something (ie, a soap opera) be both self-reflexive and Passionately Realist? My first inclination is no, because souless art drowns in wink-wink-nudge-nudge humor. But are soaps like "Soap" (awesome show by the way) and "Passions" humourous tributes or parodies?
I'm inclined to see them as genre pieces. Well-executed genre flicks are definitely Passionately Realist. Take "House Party," for example. It's clearly of the kids-partying-while-parents-are-gone genre, but its takes care to have it's own soul, greater than that off a knock off parody. "House Party" strives to be the best film it can be---it's got a great script, wonderful acting by virtue of Kid, and it's even nicely shot. Nobody expects masterpieces from teen comedies, but they took the time to make one regardless. It's a perfect film; perhaps the best film of its genre to date.
Back to soaps: "Passions" and its kin take the soap opera format and punch up the genre's aspects with more drama and alien babies. The key here might lie in the presentation. The actors never show the absurdity to the audience. The emotions they feel---even for ludicrous reasons like being pregant with butterflies (see yesterday's "Passions"---are played legitimate. Even "Soap" with it's wise-cracking wooden dummy was played earnest and straight. Parodies are played for direct laughs. There's a extra layer. The audience isn't watching the actors enact the action. Their watching actors poke fun at the action while acting it for the audiences benefit. Hammy parodies have clumsy feet. Whether or not clumsy things can be Passionately Realist is another debate. Chevy Chase, anyone?
And High School Reunion is on Thursdays before the beauty that is "The Surreal Life." We'll watch it this week.
Is Passions passionately realist? I think in expression, like Punch-Drunk Love, that it may be, but I wonder whether it is in execution. Isn't it parody? Whether it is or isn't, which seems to be the debate I've been hearing since I first heard about the show, it is definitely passionate realist in theme. Aren't soaps inherently passionately realistic? Or are soaps like the soap opera in Soapdish? Are they parodying themselves now or are they remaining true to their roots?
Friday, January 24, 2003
It is to be expected that "Passions" is the most passionately realist soap opera on TV. Less foreseen is how the show "High School Reunion" serves as an aquarium in which passionate realism goes head to head with apathy and crushing ennui. The "cast" came of age at the height of slackerdom, graduating from Grudge Match High in the spring of 1992. The true drama of the show isn't whether the nerd can win the homecoming queen, it's in the struggle between the new souls and the old-hat Gen X-ers. Just over half the class came into their pop-culture mansion with bravado in place. The lining of letter jackets held grand dreams of waking up their classmates and showing them the brave, adult human they'd become. The third episode was last night and only a few stalwart souls remain uncrushed by the inertia of the popular kids who have shoved the upstarts back into their kennels wielding whips of cool detachment. God save the nerd's self-esteem from the cruelty of everything-is-lameists.
Thursday, January 23, 2003
I've spent the morning watching my favorite soap and trying to figure out why the Weekly has shorted me another $600 this month when I thought we straightened everything out when this happened last month. Needless to say, death, adultery and poverty were beginning to drag me down until----I got an email from Paul Tatara! We've been discussing the motivations behind different critics and different styles of critiquing. I told him why I switched from film to theater criticism, and part of his (passionately realist) response was this:
"When you review movies, you're reviewing monolithic machinery. It's gotten to the point where you're basically covering General Motors. I absolutely felt that. It's like shouting into a black hole. I always tried to view myself as a keeper of the flame. I would mock things that deserved mocking, but always tried to praise films that were worthwhile. Movies really are my passion, and it
hurts to see them turned into crass, corporate jokes."
Also, a hearty congratulations to Paul and his wife, who 6 days ago gave birth to Jack, the future of passionate realism, unless he rebels against his parents and becomes an NEA-hating Republican or something. Way to go, guys!
Wednesday, January 22, 2003
John Powers ! Welcome to the Passionate Realists!
"If the '60s and early '70s were shot through with a sentimental, often dopey idealism, the last two decades have put a premium on a particular, and extremely narrow, idea of being smart — wised-up, pragmatic, detached. Our culture has made a fetish of knowingness: which tech stock is hot, which designer is about to break out, which movie is number one at the box office, which cable show is being spoofed on Saturday Night Live, which Internet site sells the cheapest everything. The flip side of all this knowing has been a loss of courage, a terror of appearing foolish if we champion lost causes, hang out at yesterday's hot club or (god help us) admit to tearing up at the uncle's death in Spider-Man. At times, it seems that American life — or at least that part of it portrayed in the media — has become a ghastly version of high school in which everyone is supposed to be one of the cool kids. Small wonder that the era's key signature has been a free-floating irony that allows almost anyone to be in on the joke, while remaining outside and beyond everything else."
----John Powers, LA Weekly, "Beyond Smart: The Fetish of Knowingness."
here i am! i love farts and poop drinking! and i think i like shania twain..sometimes.....i think she's purddy. i also like the dixie chicks, but that's it for the pop country. why is everything about me? cause i'm depressed about having to go to work!!!
don't be afraid to love what you love people!
A solid member of my top five list of influential people in my life, Paul Tatara not only made me aware of the ideas behind Passionate Realism, he's also the guy who made me a critic. I started reading Tatara's reviews on CNN.com the spring semester of my freshman year. My boyfriend at the time and I were big nerds and we spent hours scouring the internet for political news. I guess some things never change. In any case, as much as I loved the Lewinsky scandal that season, Paul Tatara quickly became my favorite feature on CNN's website---until he got fired for panning "Black Hawk Down," that is. I'd never read anyone who wrote such emotional, articulate reviews before. San Antonio critics like Larry Ratliffe said things were "fun" and gave them 4 jalepenos. Don't get me started on Ebert. But Paul was different. His review for Gus Van Sant's "Psycho" is what I consider to be the first Passionate Realist call to arms I ever came across. Toward the end he asks his readers:
"When did we grow so terribly embarrassed by self-expression? Why has the concept become so quaint? Post-modernism has infiltrated our culture to the point that there's hardly any culture left, or any people who want to nurture the creation of new and exciting works of art."
It's almost a perfect summation of today's self-devouring beast. For years before E and I defined the Passionate Realists this November, I was printing out this review by the dozens and handing them out to friends. Film friends, mainly, because by this point Tatara (and Joanna Rapf) had convinced me of the importance and relevance of movies and I'd switched majors. They're so much more than just mindless entertainment. Mind you, if you get a degree in film, you're either supposed to go into an aspect of production or become a PhD-wielding specialist in writing essays nobody reads on topics you pretend exist. Academics look down their noses at critics. They consider them wannabe professors who failed. There was a graph of what we students could do with our degree and newspaper criticism was at the bottom somewhere under gaffer. But Tatara's sharp-toothed love for film and pointed writing proved to me that good people become critics too. His work gave me respect for the field and I began to bounce off of him and explore other critics on my own. Although I didn't adopt much of Tatara's style, I can honestly say I wouldn't be a critic without him. A toast to Paul Tatara for being an example to all Passionately Realist reviewers!
I think that Passionate Realism is first and formost an ideology. It exists in opposition to rampant political correctness and irony, both of which are proving ruinous to the art and society. Passionate Realism does not provide a roadmap to creating art, rather it's like a compass pointing in the direction art should go. What that means is always open to thoughtful debate. We believe in all expressions of passion; we say that reality without passion is false; and we know that passion without bravado is pointless. These are the only guideposts we employ.
Passionate Realists believe in criticism when necessary and praise when due. Passionate Realists understand that some artists are doomed to mediocrity while others are fortunate enough to possess extraordinary talent. We do not, however, shrink from criticising or praising either the mediocre or talented.
That's all for now. I'm sleepy.
From the Fresh Archives:
[10/19/2002 2:06:50 AM | Earnest Pettie]
I think this will be the first formalized definition of passionate realism, so bear with me:
First and foremost, we believe that the universe is an orderly place, governed by natural laws which may not be broken. Nothing is completely random, and every action does spawn an equal and opposite reaction. That is where Realism comes from.
Second; We understand that belief in an orderly world would seem to reduce our actions and feelings to mere machinations of the body, biological banality, but we assert that even if there is nothing supernatural about how we think or feel, that doesn't mean that it's any less important to us. So we should not belittle our thoughts and feelings, but we should revel in them and experience them to their fullest extents. That is from whence the Passion is derived.
Finally, we have a pillar which supports this great mantle, and that pillar is bravado. We believe that it is important to have the courage of your convictions, and you should never try to hide your thoughts or feelings out of fear of embarrassment. When you do curb our thoughts and feelings, you are undermining the aim of the movement, which is a march toward better art.
______________________
We feel that adoption of those values can only result in better art. Refusing to be afraid to do good work upholds the spirit of the group. Even "selling out" is OK. If you go commercial but remain committed to doing the best work you can, then you are still supporting the aims of the movement. On the other hand, to hold back and produce mediocre work is contrary to the spirit of the movement. We denounce the values of our generation where everyone hides behind a wall of irony, afraid to admit that they might like or feel strongly for something for fear of being "dissed." That has led to stagnation in everything from music to movies to television to literature. One of the more controversial aspects of our ideology is that we believe in exceptionality. We don't believe that everyone, for instance, is capable of painting the Sistine Chapel. Just because you aren't a genius, however, is no excuse to work below your capacity. If you have the ability to only do above average work, then do above average work! Working to your capacity is both the least and the most that we can ask of you.
Who are members of our movement? 1) Snoop Dogg 2) Michael Caine 3) Earnest Pettie 4) Amy Nicholson 5) Michael Chabon 6) Dave "Moby" Stephenson 7) Jessi Jones?
Great Moments in Passionate Realism #1:
Bobby Hill smears chocolate on his chest in a heart shape and squeals "Connie! I'm your little candy man!"
---------King of the Hill - "I'm with Cupid"
Tuesday, January 21, 2003
Passionate Realist song: Faith Evans's "I Love You." Craig Kilborne recognized its greatness a year ago. It's entirely syruppy. but appropriately so. Who wants a love song that tries to be anything but a love song?
